The Last Concubine (3 page)

The assault never came, at least not in the form of violence. There was a tap at the door, and one of the soldiers opened it to reveal a veritable army of servants made up of eunuchs and women dressed in plain but well-made clothing. They bore lanterns, covered trays from which tantalizing odors emanated, and lengths of rich fabrics. One carried a brazier of glowing coals, which he took into the sitting chamber. He went to the fireplace and soon coaxed a fire to life.

Other eunuchs scurried about, placing lanterns, hanging curtains at the windows, sweeping sheets off the furniture to reveal chairs and tables of carved rosewood inlaid with mother of pearl designs. In a matter of minutes, they transformed the cold, barren room into one of comfort and warmth.

Shu Ning spoke with the servants, directing several to prepare the largest bedchamber for the princess, another on how to bestow the luggage, and still another to set up a table with the trays bearing food. Then he ordered them all out of the room.

“Come, Princess Zhen Lan’xiu, sit and eat. You must be weary and hungry.”

“Ning, why are you talking like that?”

Ning jerked his head to the door and cupped a hand to his ear. “Break your fast, my Lady. And then I will escort you to your bedchamber and put you to bed.”

Lan’xiu gave him a rueful smile and sighed. “I fear I am not very hungry.”

Ning sniffed at the dishes longingly and insisted, “You must have something to eat.” He lifted a cover and said, “Here is rice with bits of golden peach.”

“Very well,” Lan’xiu said, resigned. “You may serve me some of that.” She picked up her chopsticks and ate sparingly. Then she stared hard at Ning, whispering, “Eat, you idiot, don’t wait for me. I know you’re hungry. Stop pretending.”

“Yes, my Lady,” Ning said loudly, before hissing, “They must be made to treat you as you have a right by birth.”

“Oh, Ning. What would I do without you?” Lan’xiu stretched out a slim hand and patted his arm. “I am so glad you chose to accompany me.”

“Nothing could keep me from your side, Lan’xiu,” Ning said quietly. Then he began to eat hungrily, choosing pork and rice and vegetables to fill his bowl. When he’d had his fill, he looked up to find Lan’xiu watching him. He placed a finger before his lips. “The bedchamber is upstairs. You need to rest.”

He opened the door and peered into the hall. In their absence, the servants had been busy. The rest of the house was warming up and the lanterns were lit. By their light, he could now see the staircase that curved up to the second story landing. Three eunuchs and three women were lined up silently in the hallway, as if awaiting them. “My lady will now retire to her rest,” Ning announced.

The oldest female servant clapped her hands and the three eunuchs filed to the door. They went outside and the two soldiers followed them. In the silence, Lan’xiu and Ning could hear the grate of the key in the lock and knew that they were now imprisoned within the luxurious house.

“Show me to the bedchamber,” Ning ordered boldly.

The oldest woman dropped into a curtsey and spoke for the first time. “You are her highness’s slave?”

“I am her personal
servant
,” Ning stressed. “I serve her in all ways.”

“Allowances have been made,” the woman responded. “No male is permitted to stay the night in any of the houses. However, it is seen that your customs are different. My name is Jia, and I shall be the Princess Lan’xiu’s housekeeper. I am at your service. These stupid girls are Din and Miu. You need not concern yourself with them. You will convey any necessary orders to me, and I will have it seen to.”

Ning bowed. “I am Shu Ning. You may address me as Ning. And now, Princess Lan’xiu is weary from our journey and would rest.”

“Of course. Follow me.” Jia flapped her hands at the two younger women, who giggled and fled to the back of the house, peeking back at the princess all the way. “Pay no attention to them, Ning-xiānsheng. They are young and silly, and have never seen a princess before. I, however, have served in the greatest of houses and know how things should be done. Please follow me, Ning-xiānsheng.” She turned and led the way upstairs.

Lan’xiu had to smile as Ning puffed out his chest at the title of respect that Jia had conferred upon him, even though she did not feel very merry. However she did let out a small gasp of pleasure at the sight of the beautiful room designated to be hers.

The rosewood bed was massive, standing in the center of the room with a full canopy and corner boards intricately carved with dragons and phoenixes. Enamel paintings of fields and streams decorated the arched canopy boards overhead. Yellow silk bed hangings glowed in the warmth of the oil lanterns and the small ceramic stove. Matching yellow silk swathed the windows, and the puffy down quilt covered in spring green satin made the room seem cozy. Soft, lavender-colored pillows adorned the bed. A dressing table of rosewood with a matching chair with a yellow cushion stood in the bow of one window. A thick carpet of intricate design woven in tones of cream, yellow, and green, with touches here and there of salmon red and cobalt blue covered the wooden floor.

Jia opened the door to a rosewood wardrobe that extended the length of one wall to show that Lan’xiu’s clothing had been carefully hung up, while more intimate garments had been folded and placed in drawers.

She went to a door concealed behind drapes on the same wall as the bed and opened it to reveal a large, well-appointed bathing room. “The pump brings the water inside. And if her ladyship wishes for a bath, a fire may be lit under the tub to warm the water.” Jia indicated the giant copper vessel. The room was a marvel of ceramic tile and copper, using the most modern of plumbing engineering.

Then she opened another door on the opposite wall that led to a smaller room. “I assume you will wish to sleep within call of her ladyship,” she said, addressing Ning. She had still not looked directly at the princess.

“That will do excellently,” Ning said. “I am very pleased. You have thought of everything to make the princess comfortable.”

“Thank you, sir.” Jia dropped a curtsey and stole a glance at Lan’xiu, stifling a gasp at her beauty. Then the housekeeper withdrew, closing the door behind her.

Lan’xiu and Ning stood still, listening intently. Ning tiptoed to the door and opened it. The hallway was empty. He shook his head at the princess. “I will have a look,” he said, picking up one of the lanterns. He searched both the bathing room and the room designated for him before issuing forth into the hallway.

Lan’xiu wrapped her arms around her body to still her trembling, waiting for him to return. Or worse, for someone else to enter, perhaps splattered with his blood, to bring her news of his death. She was unaware she’d been holding her breath until the door opened to reveal her faithful servant returning to her.

“We are the only ones on this floor,” Ning said quietly. “The attic is empty. I have discovered no way of spying upon us, but we had best be careful.”

“Careful!” Lan’xiu laughed bitterly.

“Shhh,” Ning warned. “You are tired. You would be better in bed. Shall I contrive a bath?”

“No!” Lan’xiu shuddered. “Not here! Not now. And you must find a way out. If neither of us sleep again, you must escape.”

“I will not leave you, my Lady,” Ning said in great distress.

“Even though I have been delivered to my death, there is no need for you to share the same fate,” Lan’xiu said. “You cannot save me. You must save yourself.”

“You never know, this may not lead to your death,” Ning said hopefully.

“Always the optimist, my Ning. For you the teapot is always half-full.” Lan’xiu gave a shaky laugh. “But you know my brother. It would have suited him to simply throw me off a cliff, but in this way he will attain my death with no visible stain upon his hands. You know he will find some way to use my assassination to his advantage.”

“The governor has not chosen to come to you tonight,” Ning pointed out. “That is unusual in a warrior accustomed to claiming all he possesses. Perhaps he already has a favorite and isn’t much interested in you. You heard him in the audience. He said he had enough wives. He may never come.”

“The Lord Qiang Hüi Wei has an intelligent face,” Lan’xiu said. “He will show no unseemly haste in claiming his prize. But he is also too intelligent to ignore my brother’s overweening ambition. He may slay me out of hand without pausing to inquire whether I know the root of the plot. Between them both, I am not safe, and by virtue of being my servant, you are not safe either, my dear friend. I must get you out of here.”

“Perhaps they will let me go out to buy you face powder or some such,” Ning suggested.

“Perhaps. And perhaps one of the soldiers is by no means so content with his lot that he would turn down a fortune in jewels. If only I
possessed
a fortune in jewels, I would bribe every last man to get you free.”

Ning came to her and sank to his knees, beginning to weep a little. He grabbed her hand and kissed it, unable to speak until he felt her other hand caressing his head. “If you are to die, I will die with you,” he declared.

“What have I ever done to deserve a friend as true and loyal as you?” she wondered. “It would make me much happier to know at least that you survived rather than to have you share my fate.”

“What would I do? Where would I go?” Ning wailed.

“Who else would put up with you?” Lan said, her voice shaking a little with laughter, even though unshed tears glimmered in her eyes.

Instantly, Ning retorted, “Who would put up with
you
? If Hüi Wei has a brain in his head, he would soon find your beauty conceals the sting of a summer wasp.”

Lan laughed. “Honors to both sides, then. We die together.”

“Or perhaps we live together.” Ning wiped his eyes on his sleeve. “You were an oracle caster, or at least your mother taught you the art. Are you sure we are going to die?”

“You know one cannot read one’s own omens,” Lan said regretfully. “And since my mother’s death, the gods have refused to speak with me, and the way is not clear. Clouds are before my eyes.”

Ning sighed. “At least we are away from your brother’s minions and we can sleep tonight. We will take turns watching.”

“Mind you wake me when you start to nod off,” Lan admonished.

“It was only once that I was so tired I could not keep my eyes open,” Ning protested.

Lan smiled. “I’ll take first watch.”

“I cannot sleep in your bed,” Ning pointed out.

“There is a lovely window seat with a cushion, just your size,” Lan said, pointing at the niche partially hidden behind the curtains. “There seems to be another quilt in your room. You may bring it here and wrap yourself up warmly.”

Ning yawned widely like a cat, not bothering to cover his mouth. “I think I will if you’re sure.”

“I’m sure,” Lan said. She watched her friend and servant hurry into the smaller anteroom and murmured, “I shall have plenty of time to sleep when I’m dead.”

L
ADY
M
EI
J
U
stood by the window, waiting. At times when the winter snows came or the delicate mists of spring obscured the square, she could pretend that instead of looking across at identical houses, she was still at home with her parents and sisters and brothers, with a view of open rice fields to the mountains beyond.

It had been so long since she had been outside these walls that it made her feel old. Mei Ju sighed and then giggled silently. She
was
old; at least older than the other concubines. And she felt grateful to be. She alone of her family still lived, by virtue of being here when the hordes had overrun her village, razing it to the ground and killing all her family and friends. Those had been terrifying times of rebellion, but her Lord Qiang Hüi Wei had brought stability and peace to the region in the name of the Son of Heaven, emperor of China.

She tried to avoid looking at her reflection in the window as she waited for this new concubine with a heavy heart. Even before she had been designated first wife, she had known that her lord would add concubines to his household, but each time it caused her a pang. For a time, he would be distracted or enthralled with his new possession, and the lantern would not be lit for her. Mei Ju knew her lord’s love of conquest, and knowing the other wives, she tortured herself by imagining that each courtship and eventual capitulation had followed a different course than her own. Qiang Hüi Wei was a very clever man, known for his mastery of strategy and love of battle. Each time he had eventually come back to her, but Mei Ju knew well that his heart had never been hers.

Rumor had flown throughout the compound that the seventh concubine was extremely beautiful, and Mei Ju dutifully celebrated that fact on behalf of her beloved Hüi Wei. He deserved only the best. Besides, beauty alone was not enough for Hüi. Although the second and sixth wives were very pretty, they had not managed to hold his interest for very long.

When she caught sight of the small party approaching her home, Mei Ju turned away from the window and clapped her hands twice. Her servant went to the door, and while she listened to the sounds of umbrellas being closed and stood within draining pots, wraps being taken and hung to dry, Mei Ju seated herself before the fire and composed her face to receive her company.